SHAH ALAM, 11 Jan: The people should not fear the government’s travesty of always using the Peaceful Assembly Act 2011 to deny the freedom of assembly which is enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

The Assemblyman for Batu Caves, Amirudin Shari, said that he welcomed the decision of the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court yesterday to release Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Azmin Ali and four others from the charge of participating in the BERSIH 3.0 rally.

He said that the judgement is a good sign for the people and it proves that the provisions stipulated in the Peaceful Assembly Act 2011 is autocratic and is against the spirit of the Constitution.

“Looking at this decision, which is relevant precedent for subsequent cases, it is clear that the court’s action is based on the Constitution which enshrines the right of assembly as fundamental rights of the people,” said Amirudin in a press statement.

He said following the judgement of the Court of Appeal last week, where the magistrate’s order to prohibit the assembly is not valid, Judge Ahmad Bache in his judgement yesterday also decided that the charges against Anwar and Azmin, as well as four others, were unfounded.

“The people should not have to fear with the government’s travesty of often using the Act to scare and deny the freedom of assembly,” he said.

Previously, Azmin Ali said that the decision should serve as a lesson to the prosecution to be professional and to make the law as a basis.